Wilton - Course 1 Class 4 - FINAL

I had my final Course 1 class last night but before I left the store, I had already registered for Course 2 so you haven't heard the last of my cake decorating adventures.

My cake was an 8" round classic white cake with strawberry filling. The cake itself could have been a little more moist so I'll keep working on that. Also, I used two mixes; one for the top layer and one for the bottom layer so this thing was HUGE! Jake and Maddie had a piece when I got home and he took the rest to work today.

The roses looked a little better than last week but there's always room for improvement. And my drop flowers (on the bottom of the cake) were a disaster. Here's the result:

And I'm super excited to say that I have gotten my first business as a cake decorator!!! One of Jake's co-workers ordered a sheet cake for 50 ppl for her daugher's graduation party next weekend. WOOHOO!!! Maybe I have finally found something I can earn some extra income with (painting = fail, uppercase living = fail, so far).

Happy Memorial Day

Wilton - Course 1 Class 3

This week I learned the shell border and dots of various sizes. The cake was supposed to be a clown theme so I baked a funfetti cake by Pillsbury......HUGE MISTAKE!! I have concluded that Pillsbury mixes are terrible. Not only do they taste blah but I had the hardest time getting the dern thing out of my pan. So anyway, lesson learned; stick to Duncan Hines.

I used the colored icing from last week because I didn't want to waste it. So I grossly underestimated how much yellow icing I'd need for the clowns' bodies, thus I only have 1 clown. But I highly doubt I'll ever be making clowns again, I find them a little scary. Here's the result:

Then I learned how to make the "Wilton Rose"....can you say "intimidating?" This one is definitely going to take some practicing, that's for sure. But I really want to get good because next week's final cake is going to have 7 of them!!! The rose on the left was made by my instructor and the other was made by me;

I have some serious practicing to do.

Wilton - Course 1 Class 2

For Mother's Day I asked for something a little unconventional; a Wilton cake decorating class. It's a 4 week course in basic cake decorating techniques and tips. So far I've had 2 classes. The first class was going over what supplies I need and we watched the instructor make buttercream icing and how to ice a cake. Nothing too exciting. I already had this

so I was ready for the actual decorating part.

The second class was using the star tip. We had the choice of decorating a character cake or this;

Not bad for my first real try at cake decorating. I discovered that 1. icing a cake is NOT as easy as it seems and 2. using the star tip makes your hand hurt really bad. The actual cake was a lemon cake and it was very yummy. Again I sent most of it with Jake to work so we didn't have to eat it all. Especially since the next 2 classes, I'll be decorating cakes and bringing them home. Talk about lots of cake!!!

Cookies & Cream Cupcakes

I'm a sucker for anything flavored Cookies & Cream so I HAD to try this recipe that I found here. Only I used my muffin pan, not the silicone baking cups, so I got around 30 cupcakes instead of 24.

We took them to our Mother's Day celebration at the Schmidt Jrs. house and of course had left-overs. We let the Jrs. keep 5 and I sent the rest with Jake to work. I've already gotten one email from him asking for the recipe so I figured this was the best way to share it with others.

Grade: A+ per Jake and Maddie :)

30 Oreo cookies
1 package plain white cake mix
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set the pans aside.
2. Count out 12 Oreos and separate the top and bottom wafers. Make sure each has some of the icing on it. Place one wafer, icing side up, in the bottom of each paper liner. Set them aside. Place the remaining 18 Oreos between sheets of waxed paper or in a large, closed zipper-lock bag and crush them by rolling over them with a rolling pin. Set these crumbs aside.

3. Place the cake mix, sour cream, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 1 1/2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of the crushed Oreos and fold these into the batter until well incorporated. Set aside the remaining crushed Oreos for the frosting. Spoon or scoop 1/3 cup batter into each lined cup­cake cup, filling it three quarters of the way full. (You will get between 22 and 24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.) Place the pans in the oven.
4. Bake the cupcakes until they are lightly golden and spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 5 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edges of the cupcake liners, lift the cup­cakes up from the bottoms of the cups using the end of the knife, and pick them out of the cups carefully with your finger­tips. Place them on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before frosting.

Store these cupcakes, in a cake saver or under a glass dome, at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. If you plan to freeze them, don't add the cookie-crumb topping. Wrap them in aluminum foil or in a cake saver and freeze for up to 6 months. Thaw the cup­cakes overnight in the refrigerator and top with cookie crumbs before serving.

COOKIES AND CREAM FROSTING

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cup confectioners sugar, sifted
pinch of salt
1/3 cup whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
remaining crushed Oreos

Mix together butter, confectioners sugar, and a pinch of salt until it’s creamy. Increase your mixer speed to high and beat until its light and fluffy. Add whipping cream and vanilla. Beat until its smooth. Fold in crushed Oreos. Makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes.

Debbie's Banana Dessert

No, I have no idea who Debbie is. But I thank her for making this super duper banana pudding dessert. My Nanny gave me a cookbook for 2006 Christmas which was compiled by a bunch of ladies from her church. She lives in a pretty small town in Central Texas which happens to have a very large population of German-Texans. With names like Koepp, Bierstedt, Tschoepe and of course Schmidt......you can't go wrong with these ladies recipes.


2 boxes vanilla wafers
1 stick butter, melted
2 (8 oz) pkgs. cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
3 (8 oz) containers of whipped topping
1 large pkg instant vanilla pudding mix (prepare according to directions)
1 bunch of bananas - (I use 4 bananas)

Crush 1 box of vanilla wafers & mix with the cup of melted butter - press this mixture into a 13x9 pan. Blend cream cheese, powdered sugar & add 1.5 containers of whipped topping - spread this mixture over crust. Cut up 3-4 bananas in round slices and place side-by-side over this layer. Layer prepared instant pudding next. Top with remaining whipped topping. Crush 1/2 the other box of vanilla wafers and sprinkle on top & line the sides of the dish with the remaining whole wafers. Refridgerate.

I've made Debbie's Banana Dessert on a few different occasions so I decided to share it with you. I made the latest batch last weekend for the Schmidt Jrs' Annual Crawfish Boil. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of it before I put it out. So I put it out on the table, turned around to grab my camera and this is all that was left in that minute of time, I'm not kidding.